M6018 - Bachelor of Medical Science and Doctor of Medicine - 2017

Monash is the only Victorian university to offer both direct-from-school entry and graduate entry to the same medical degree. Whichever your pathway to medicine at Monash, you will see the discoveries of our world-renowned researchers put into clinical practice and enjoy our links to the largest health-care provider network in Australia, which includes the Monash Medical Centre and The Alfred, Melbourne's major casualty hospital, Eastern Health and health services in rural, regional and outer metropolitan Melbourne.

The course is designed as an integrated curriculum, with units taught in an interdisciplinary fashion by staff from across the faculty and in a wide range of learning environments, both campus and clinical.

Students entering as graduates are given one year of credit, and the integrated medical and behavioural sciences of the first two years of the course are replaced by one year of accelerated study (Year A) at the Monash University School of Rural Health located on the Gippsland campus of Federation University Australia. Year A is largely campus-based, with rural clinical and community placements. The Churchill (Gippsland) facilities include a sophisticated clinical simulations centre and access to state of the art clinical training facilities at the Latrobe regional hospital, Warragul, Sale, Wonthaggi and Leongatha hospitals and GP learning centres across West, Central, South and East Gippsland. At the completion of this one year of study graduate-entry students join the school-leaver cohort in Year 3B.

Years 3B to 5D of the course are conducted in clinical settings, generally in hospitals and practices across metropolitan Melbourne and rural Victoria. During this period students will spend around 40 hours per week working at a clinical site. This will provides students with time for self-directed study, and the time and opportunity to be in control of their own learning and to develop skills in problem-solving and the critical appraisal of information. Year 5D offers rotations through a number of clinical settings, such as aged care and emergency medicine, with the opportunity to undertake a scholarly intensive project.

The graduate entry program is open only to applicants who have completed a Monash University degree in biomedical science (including those undertaking double degrees), pharmacy, physiotherapy and science (with the completion of specific units) or have completed or are in the final year of a bachelor's degree with a significant biomedical science content at an internationally recognised university. Information about admission requirements can be found online.

The course is accredited by the Australian Medical Council. After successfully completing the course, graduates become eligible for provisional registration with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency and the Medical Board of Australia. After serving a compulsory internship year of residence in an approved hospital, graduates become eligible for final registration in Victoria and other states of Australia. Graduates initially work as a doctor within the hospital system and can undertake further specialty training in a range of areas, such as general practice, obstetrics, paediatrics, psychiatry and surgery.

To broaden your options, you will have the opportunity to take intermission from your medicine studies after Year 3B to undertake the honours year of the Bachelor of Medical Science (leading to the award of Bachelor of Medical Science (Honours)), and focus on an area of medical science research, before returning to the course. This will place you in an excellent position to continue with medical research at a later stage, perhaps through a PhD, should you so wish.

Rural practice

All students are encouraged to spend time in rural areas. In order for the University to meet the requirements of the Australian Government Rural Clinical Training and Support (RCTS) program, all students that hold a Commonwealth-supported place (CSP) are required to undertake a minimum of four weeks experience in rural areas. A cohort of students will be given the opportunity to spend up to two years in a rural site.

These course outcomes are aligned with the Australian Qualifications Framework Level 7 and Level 9 and Monash Graduate AttributesAustralian Qualifications Framework Level 7 and Level 9 and Monash Graduate Attributes (http://www.monash.edu.au/pubs/handbooks/alignmentofoutcomes.html).

Upon successful completion of this course it is expected that students will be able to:

Stage one: Bachelor of Medical Science

1. demonstrate awareness of the social, ethical, economic and environmental context of health and illness and psychological wellbeing and delivery of care
2. demonstrate knowledge regarding the health of populations as well as individuals
3. show knowledge and skills relating to medical science and health issues
4. reflect upon and show compassion for issues pertinent to equity, quality and humanity in health care
5. take responsibility for their self-directed learning
6. recognise the essential role and use of research in underpinning medical practice
7. access and critically review medical research literature and best available evidence
8. develop a focused research question and suggest an appropriate research method
9. promote approaches that support preventative medicine and health promotion
10. act as both a leader and effective team member in learning environments
11. reflect upon the role of a doctor and recognise the community's expectations of this role.

Stage two: Doctor of Medicine

1. apply highly developed knowledge of the social, ethical, economic and environmental context of health and illness and psychological wellbeing and delivery of care
2. apply advanced knowledge to promote the health of populations as well as individuals
3. apply advanced knowledge and skills relevant to disciplines of medicine and their practice
4. show compassion and act as advocates to address issues of equity, quality and humanity in health care
5. apply skills that support life-long learning throughout their professional life
6. critically review and make judgements of medical research literature
7. show highly developed expertise in accessing, appraising, and applying the best available evidence to professional practice
8. apply highly developed knowledge and skills to identify and research or evaluate a problem or issue in medical science or professional practice
9. use specialist knowledge and skills to address the key questions relevant to the community and to medicine
10. solve complex problems using innovative and effective approaches
11. show active and expert advocacy for health by practising preventative medicine and health promotion
12. act as an effective leader and team member in workplace settings
13. reflect upon the role of a doctor and demonstrate the ability to meet the community's expectations of this role.

This course requires students to undertake off-campus clinical placements. In the clinical setting students will apply theory to practice under supervision. Attendance is mandatory for the clinical component of each unit. Students must be aware of the faculty's Clinical/Fieldwork Placement Handbook - Guiding Principles, Procedures, Policies and Behavioural RequirementsClinical/Fieldwork Placement Handbook - Guiding Principles, Procedures, Policies and Behavioural Requirements (http://www.med.monash.edu.au/policies/clinical-fieldwork-placement/index.html). Students will not be permitted to attend any clinical placements unless they have current valid Working with Children and Police checks, and have a satisfactory immunisation status.

Clinical expenses

Students are responsible for all travel and accommodation expenses during clinical placements.

The course accreditation is provided by the Australian Medical Council (AMC) and the Malaysian Medical Council (MMC). The school-leaver entry Australian course is accredited by the Singapore Medical Council (SMC).

The course develops through theme studies in personal and professional development; population, society, health and Illness; scientific basis of clinical practice; and clinical skills, all of which come together in professional practice demonstrated in the clinical placement units.

A. Theme 1: Personal and professional development

'Personal and professional development' will focus on the doctor as an individual and concentrates on the personal attributes and qualities needed by medical students and, ultimately, medical practitioners. It covers elements of health enhancement, professional responsibilities, communication skills, information technology, medical informatics and computing skills, ethics and legal issues, and clinical effectiveness.

B. Theme 2: Population, society, health and illness

'Population, society, health and illness' develops students' abilities to deal with broader society and population issues. Students will consider the social, environmental and behavioural contexts of illness and the practice of medicine, including an emphasis on rural and remote Australia. Other elements of this theme will be built around health promotion, epidemiology, public health, community diversity, population and global health, and a range of other societal issues. The history and philosophy of the scientific approach to medicine will also be included, extending this to approaches to knowledge and information, and an understanding of evidence-based medicine.

C. Theme 3: Scientific basis of clinical practice

'Scientific basis of clinical practice' includes much of the human systems-based teaching in the course. The knowledge and concepts that underpin medicine, both in the basic medical sciences and in the clinical sciences, are included.

D. Theme 4: Clinical skills

'Clinical skills' encompasses the whole range of clinical skills. This begins with clinical aspects of communication skills and introduction to practical clinical skills including handwashing, sharps disposal; subcutaneous and intramuscular injecting. Early in the course students will interact with health care professionals during medical contact visits, and will be introduced to the medical interview, taking a family history, ethical aspects of medical contact visits. Comprehensive history taking, systems based physical examinations and procedural clinical skills are further developed during later clinical placements. The approach in clinical skills development will be to develop defined clinical competencies.

Units are interdisciplinary, with themes woven through each semester.

Year A

Blocks of systems-based sub-units are presented with a mix of basic medical science content, patient-based presentations and discussions in small groups. These sub-units combine basic content with generic skills and are set in appropriate clinical contexts, largely through the use of patient-oriented learning. Topics include:

• cardiovascular system
• endocrinology
• gastrointestinal system
• genomics
• human behaviour
• human development and growth
• immunology and infection
• metabolism
• molecules, cells and tissues
• musculo-skeletal system
• neurosciences
• nutrition
• reproduction
• respiratory system
• urinary system.

Years 3B and 4C

During this period, clinical content is delivered in blocks of clinical rotations, with a mix of advanced and applied medical science, patient-oriented presentations, and discussions in small tutorial groups. A variety of clinical settings are used, including a range of metropolitan and rural hospitals, ambulatory clinics and the rural environment. The emphasis will be on students gaining real clinical experience, participating in patient care and understanding how health care teams work. In the third year, students will study integrated medicine and surgery and pathophysiology which will be taught together with a series of problem-based and core-based learning sessions. The fourth year will be largely taken up with the core clinical rotations of:

• children's health
• general practice
• psychological medicine
• women's health.

Year 5D

The final year of the course focuses on facilitating the students' transition into the medical workplace as a trainee intern and will be structured as a series of clinical rotations. Students will participate in a range of learning experiences designed to substantially enhance their clinical reasoning, diagnostic and case management skills. They will consolidate and enhance their knowledge, clinical skills and professional behaviours in clinically orientated rotations:

• aged care
• emergency medicine
• medicine
• patient safety
• scholarly intensive project
• specialty
• surgery.

The course requires the completion of two stages. To progress to stage two students must have completed all of the requirements for the Bachelor of Medical Science and be in good standing with the faculty and meet all requirements of the applicant checks.

Stage one: Bachelor of Medical Science

Stage one of the course comprises 96 points,* of which all are core units comprised of 48 points of campus-based study (Year A) and 48 credit points of clinically based study (Year 3B).*

* Students in M6018 complete stage one, Year A as detailed below which already allows for credit granted as a graduate-entry student.

The course develops through theme studies in: Theme 1: Personal and professional development, Theme 2: Population, society, health and illness, Theme 3: Scientific basis of clinical practice and Theme 4: Clinical skills.

Students complete:

Year A

• GMA1010 Foundations of medical practice
• GMA2000 Year A Final grade

Year 3B

• MED3051 Medicine and surgery 1
• MED3062 Medicine and surgery 2
• MED3200 Introductory clinical studies

Stage two: Doctor of Medicine

Stage two of the course comprises 96 points.

Students progress to stage two of the course having successfully completed Year 3 of the Bachelor of Medical Science which is cross-credited for the master's qualification.

Students complete:

Year 4C

• MED4190 Specialty clinical practices
• MED4200 Integrated clinical studies

Year 5D

• MED5091 Advanced clinical practice 1
• MED5092 Advanced clinical practice 2
• MED5102 Contemporary developments in clinical practice: patient safety
• MED5101 Applied studies in medical research and professional practice

Honours

Students may intermit for one year to undertake a one-year honours program leading to M3701 Bachelor of Medical Science (Honours).

Graduates would be eligible to apply for any further studies at tertiary level for which the master's program meets entry requirements.